Teardrops on my Guitar
by westerncowgirl
Summary: This is a songfic based on Taylor Swift's song 'Teardrops on my guitar' This is also my first PS story and sonfic. How would you like it if the guy your crushing on talks to you all the time about another girl? eventually Sake.
1. Chapter 1

**Teardrops on My Guitar**

_Drew looks at me, I fake a smile so he won't see  
That I want and I'm needing everything that we should be  
I'll bet she's beautiful, that girl he talks about  
And she's got everything that I have to live without_

Samantha Forster slammed her locker door hard after a long and frustrating week of school. She then ran towards her bus, because she was, of course, running late as usual. She made it to her bus just in time. She climbed up the steps and found her best friend, Jen Kenworthy, saving her a seat towards the back of the bus. She sat down next to Jen, and Jen could tell that Sam was in a bad mood.

"Hey Sam, what's up?" said Jen.

Sam didn't feel like talking and shook her head and said "I'll tell you after we get off the bus."

For the rest of the ride Sam was lost in deep thought A few weeks ago, her family had had a New Year's Eve bonfire. At the bonfire her oldest friend, Jake Ely, had held her hand and Sam had realized that she had a crush on him. Although, that didn't really matter much now. Jake had been talking to Sam all week, but it was because of a girl he had asked to the Valentine's Dance at school, and of course the girl had said she would go. Her name was Kate Sanley and she was perfect in every way. She had long, blonde hair and a good figure. Sam had wanted to tell Jake that she liked him, but she didn't have the nerve to do it. Instead every time he talked about Kate Sanley, she pretended to be so happy her him. She would fake a smile every time he started talking, which was unusual for Jake.

Sam came out of her deep thinking about Jake when she realized that the bus had stopped and it was her stop. She and Jen got up and got off the bus. Jen started talking right away.

"So, Sam what's up? What couldn't you tell me on the bus?"

Sam answered "I don't have time to tell you, but do you think your parents would let you go for a ride after you're done with your chores?"

"I think so. This must be pretty important, if you're not telling me right away. I'll call you before, I start out. Where should we meet up?"

"Let's meet up by War Drum Flats."

"Okay, see you later Sam."

"Bye Jen."

With that Jen started walking away from the bus stop, headed towards Harmony Ranch.

Sam started walking towards River Bend, all the while looking for the Phantom. She hadn't seen him lately, but she still believed that she might see him soon. Sam kept walking towards home, when she felt someone watching her. She turned around and saw her horse standing a little ways off.

She couldn't believe that her horse was still alive. She slowly moved towards the Phantom, as if in a trance.

"Hey Zanzibar, how are you boy? I've missed you boy."

The Phantom started coming towards Sam slowly and finally stopped in front of her. Sam stretched her hand out to the Phantom and he sniffed it cautiously. The Phantom didn't seem scared, so Sam started petting him. Then she wrapped her arms around her horse and gave him a hug. She had missed him so much.

"Hey boy, do you think I could ride you today?"

Sam found a rock and stepped on it, that was the Phantom. The Phantom sensed what she was going to do and took a couple of steps back.

"I guess you don't want me riding you, huh boy? That's okay; I have to get home anyway."

The horse started backing away more and Sam said

"I love you Zanzibar."

With that the Phantom galloped away across the river. Sam continued walking the rest of the way home. Once she got home, she went upstairs to change into her work clothes. Before she went outside though, she sat down at the kitchen table and ate the cookies that Gram had set before her.

"How was school today Samantha?" asked Gram.

"It was okay, except for my geometry test. It was really hard, but I think I might have gotten a C on it though."

Gram went back to the stove where she was making supper. Sam thought that she should probably ask her if it was okay if she went for a ride with Jen.

"Gram is it okay if I go for a ride with Jen after I'm done with my chores?"

"It should be, just make sure all of your chores are done."

With that Sam went out and started mucking out the stalls. She kept thinking about how Jake smiled and the way his eyes twinkled when he talked about Kate Sanley. What she wouldn't give for his eyes to twinkle like that when he saw her.

Sam finished mucking out the stalls, and did the rest of her chores. As she went inside the house the phone started ringing. Gram answered it and told Sam that Jen was starting out. Sam nodded showing Gram that she had heard. She grabbed a drink of water and quickly went back outside.

Sam got Ace's tack and then went to the pasture to call him. Once Sam had gotten Ace, she put his gear on and started out for War Drum Flats.

It seemed like in no time that she had arrived at War Drum Flats. Jen wasn't there yet, so Sam just sat and enjoyed looking at the scenery. Sam heard a horse and looked up to find Jen riding Silly.

"Hey Sam, what's going on? You haven't been yourself all week. You have to tell me what's going on; otherwise I'll throw you in the lake."

Sam took a deep breathe and said

"Jake's been talking to me all week about some senior girl named Kate Sanley and it's been getting on my nerves." Sam didn't feel like elaborating yet, so Jen had to guess why that would bother Sam.

"Why should some girl that Jake's been talking about annoy you? The only way that would enjoy me would be if I liked the guy." Jen suddenly put two and two together and looked at Sam. Sam was looking guilty and Jen realized that Sam liked Jake more than as a friend.

"Sam you don't my any chance like Jake than more as a friend, do you?"

Sam didn't answer right away, which gave her away. Sam looked at Jen and found that she was grinning, and her eyes said I knew it.

"I knew it!" Exclaimed Jen.

"Jen don't tell anyone what you just figured out, and please don't make fun of me."

"I wouldn't dream of making fun of you. Personally I don't feel like that towards Jake because he thinks he knows it all, but you two would be perfect together. But you say he's going out with that Kate Sanley girl? I always thought she was a boring, stuck up type of girl. Jake doesn't know what's he's missing by going out with that girl."

Sam smiled at her best friend. It was nice to know that Jen wasn't making fun of her for liking Jake and also for saying those other things.

"Thanks Jen. You always know how to make me feel better. What do I do now, though? I want to be with Jake, but he doesn't know that I like him like that, and he's always talking about that girl."

"I don't know, but we'll think of something. I could beat him up for you. Then maybe he would know and it would be fun."

"Jen don't go beating him up, even though it would be fun for you." Sam could see the disappoint in her friends eyes, because Jen would love to beat up Jake for her for no good reason. "Maybe I could make him jealous, but that never really works does it?"

"We'll think of something Sam. You could tell him how you feel though right now."

"Why would I tell him how I feel about him right now? He's not even here"

"I wouldn't be to sure about that. Look towards the north Sam."

Sam then looked towards the north and sure enough there was a rider coming towards them riding a black horse.

_Drew talks to me, I laugh cause it's so damn funny  
That I can't even see anyone when he's with me  
He says he's so in love, he's finally got it right,   
I wonder if he knows he's all I think about at night_

Jake came up to them and stopped. He started talking about Kate and Sam listened. She then started telling him how she had seen the Phantom again for the first time in a while. Sam forget that Jen was there and only realized that she was there after Jake had left.

"Sam, you never told me you saw the Phantom again."

"I'm sorry Jen, I forgot about it until just then."

"It's weird the way you are when you're around Jake. I didn't realize it until just now though. It's like you can only see him and nobody else when he's around."

Sam thought about that. Was it true? Did she forget about everybody else when she was around Jake? Maybe it was true.

It was getting late, so Sam said good bye to Jen and started for home.

_He's the reason for the teardrops on my guitar  
The only thing that keeps me wishing on a wishing star  
He's the song in the car I keep singing, don't know why I do._

Later on that night when Sam was in her bedroom, and she was thinking about Jake again. She was surprised when she felt a tear run down her cheek. Everybody she knew thought she should be with Jake, except for Jake. She wanted to make a wish, but she didn't believe that it would help. She had dropped little hints that she liked him, but it didn't do any good.

_Drew walks by me, can he tell that I can't breathe?  
And there he goes, so perfectly,  
the kind of flawless I wish I could be  
she'd better hold him tight, give him all her love  
Look in those beautiful eyes and know she's lucky cause_

The next day was Saturday and Sam got to sleep in. She was surprised to see Jake sitting at the kitchen table, until she remembered that he and her dad were getting a new horse that needed breaking in. Sam felt a little breathless, and hoped nobody noticed.

After breakfast Sam went outside and started on her chores. Once she finished she decided to go watch her dad and Jake break in the new horse. The horse was a mustang and was fighting them hard. But eventually they got a headstall on her and they decided to leave it at that for the day. Jake came over and asked Sam if she wanted to go for a ride, which she accepted gladly.

An hour later Jake and Sam were out riding. At first it was quiet and the only thing you could hear were the birds and the wind blowing. Then Jake broke the silence and said

"You're awfully quiet today brat."

"I'm just tired that's all."

"So Kate and I going to the Valentine's Dance together."

"I know. You told me that yesterday during lunch. I'm so happy for you. I never thought that you would be able to ask a girl out, because you're always so shy around strangers."

Sam decided that she would treat Jake like an older brother, like she always had.

They started heading back towards Three Ponies Ranch. Sam had to stop and get a recipe from Mrs. Ely that Gram wanted to try. Once they got to the ranch, Sam noticed a strange car and saw a blonde headed girl get out of it. Of course, she thought. It was Jake's girlfriend. Jake rode ahead and left Sam behind to go greet his guest.

_He's the reason for the teardrops on my guitar  
The only thing that keeps me wishing on a wishing star  
He's the song in the car I keep singing, don't know why I do._

_So I drive home alone, as I turn out the light  
I'll put his picture down and maybe  
Get some sleep tonight_

Sam arrived in the ranch yard and went inside to get the recipe for Gram. She didn't know where Jake and his girlfriend had gone, and felt like Jake had abandoned her, which was actually true. Mrs. Ely gave Sam the recipe and Sam thanked her. Sam unhitched Ace from where she had tied him, and got up into the saddle. She then started for home alone.

Later that night Sam was going through the pictures she had taken over time with her camera. She was looking for one that she had taken of Jen on Silly, for a birthday gift for Jen. Jen's birthday was only a week away, and she thought the picture would be perfect. As Sam was looking she came across one that she had taken of Jake on Witch, and he was holding Faith, a blind little filly. She looked at the picture for a long time, and then eventually put down the picture. She would figure out a way to tell Jake that she liked him and that they were meant to be together. Somehow she would make her dream come true someday. But for now, she would pretend that she was happy for Jake.

_He's the reason for the teardrops on my guitar  
The only one who's got enough of me to break my heart  
He's the song in the car I keep singing, don't know why I do  
He's the time taken up, but there's never enough   
And he's all that I need to fall into.._

Drew looks at me, I fake a smile so he won't see.


	2. AN

Author's Note

I'm thinking about making this story into more than a one shot. Review and let me know if you think I should or if I should just keep it a one shot. If you have any ideas or suggestions I would love to hear them. Also thanks to Rosylover343 and EFlovehorses45.

Westercowgirl


	3. Chapter 2:The Plan

Chapter 2: The Plan

The following Friday Sam was daydreaming in her geometry class. How could she get Jake away from Kate, and make his realize that he liked her? She was still thinking about it when the bell rang ten minutes later. It was finally the best class of the day: lunch.

Sam met up with Jen at her locker and then the two girls proceeded to the cafeteria. They found their usual table, sat down, and started eating.

"Did you think of any ideas yet to get Jake away from that Kate girl?" asked Sam.

Jen put down her sandwich and said

"I thought of one thing, but I'm not sure it will work though."

"What?" demanded Sam.

"Well I was thinking that maybe if you went out with another guy, Jake might get jealous and realized his true feelings for you."

Sam thought about it. Could this possibly work? All the other ideas that she and Jen had come with during the last couple of days didn't seem possible, but this one might just work. If she decided to go with this plan who would she find to go out with to make Jake jealous?

"I like this plan Jen, there's just one problem."

"What's that" asked Jen.

"Who would I get to go out with me to make Jake jealous?"

Both girls started looking around the cafeteria for possible boys.

"What about Darrel?" asked Jen

"No way, I would just be encouraging him to think that I like him when I don't and besides he's Jake's best friend. I don't want to start a fight between them, if your theory is right."

"Good point." Said Jen.

Sam and Jen continued looking around the cafeteria and both of their eyes settled on the same guy.

"What about Quinn Ely?" both girls asked at the same time. They both grinned wickedly at each other.

"One thing that would get Jake's attention and annoy him would be if his older brother started 'dating' you." Said Jen.

"Besides that Quinn would love to play a joke on Jake, so he would probably go along with us on the plan." Said Sam.

"This is going to be interesting." Said Jen. "I'll ask Quinn if he wants to help us out. There's only one thing though. I'll actually have to tell him you like Jake as more than a friend, so he helps. That okay with you Sam?"

Sam shook her head yes. She knew that Quinn wouldn't tell anybody that she liked Jake as more than a friend.

For the first time in weeks Sam felt happy and had hope that the guy she loved would notice her and eventually fall in love with her. Sam knew that her thoughts were those of a romantic school girl's, but she didn't care. A sudden thought occurred to her.

"Hey Jen, are we still going shopping at the mall tonight?"

"Yeah, except my mom has to drive us. I still don't have my license, even though tomorrow is my sixteenth birthday."

"That's fine."

The bell rang ending the lunch period.

"I'll talk to Quinn and ask him next hour during biology." Said Jen.

Sam nodded her head and then headed in the opposite direction for her next class.

The next three class periods seemed to drag on forever to Sam. But finally the last bell of the day rang and Sam bolted out the door. Sam went to her locker and threw the books she didn't need in her locker and grabbed the books and notebooks that she needed. Then she dashed for her bus. For once, she actually got on the bus before Jen. Finally Jen found Sam and sat down next to her.

"So what did Quinn say," asked Sam impatiently.

"He said he would be thrilled to help us in our plan. Oh and by the way he said he thinks you and Jake should be together. He doesn't think much of that Kate Sanley. He said she was a stuck up blonde girl and that his little brother could do way better with you."

Sam smiled and thought to herself. Everybody around her thought that she and Jake should be together. She hoped that would come true in the future.

"Now we have to go into details with our plan," said Jen.

"How about we plan while we shop at the mall tonight?" asked Sam.

"That's what I was thinking, and I invited Quinn along to help us. He can also drive us to the mall. He might have some good ideas for us. Besides he would know what would make Jake jealous." Said Jen.

The bus stopped at their stop.

"We'll pick you up around six," said Jen. "Don't forget your overnight stuff either."

Sam was spending the night at Jen's after they went shopping at the mall.

"I won't forget. See ya." Said Sam.

The girls parted company and started towards their ranches and both couldn't wait for tonight to come, so they could plan.

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I want to thank everybody who reviewed before and for the suggestions. The mall part of this story might seem confusing right now, but I promise that something surprising will happen at the mall. Please review and as always got suggestions I would love to hear them.

Westerncowgirl


	4. Chapter 3: Surprises at the mall

**Surprises at the Mall**

At six o'clock that night Quinn and Jen picked Sam up at Riverbend. Then they were on the highway towards town.

"So what kind of details are you thinking about?" asked Sam.

"I was thinking of how, when, and where and stuff like that," replied Jen.

"What if Jake saw us at school holding hands?" asked Sam

"That would work," said Quinn. "Jake would get mad if he saw us at school acting all lovey dovey and holding hands."

They kept talking about different scenarios for Sam and Quinn to do at school and outside of school. Some of the scenarios were crazy and others seemed to fit perfectly with the plan. Finally they made it to Crane Crossing Mall.(**Is that right?) **Jen and Sam went to all the clothing stores that the mall possessed. Then they went to a few shoe stores. The girls could tell that Quinn didn't really like the clothes shopping or the shoe shopping, but he was being a good sport and not complaining about it. At one of the clothes stores Sam let Jen pick out a sweater, since it was Jen's sixteenth birthday tomorrow. Jen had picked out a sweater that was of course a brilliant shade of orange with neon polka dots on it.

After the three of them were done clothes and shoe shopping they headed to the food court. They all ordered something to eat and a soda to go along with it. They found a table and sat down and started eating their food. A few tables down from the table the three friends were sitting at was a girl with blonde hair. She sat alone and seemed to be waiting for somebody.

"Figures," said Sam. "Of all the girls that have to be sitting a few tables away waiting for her precious boyfriend, it has to be Kate Sanley." Sam sat glaring at the girl. The girl didn't look up and didn't notice the red haired girl glaring at her.

"Let's go," said Sam. Sam made to get up but the other two didn't move at all. "Come on, you guys lets just go. She's probably waiting for Jake and don't want to see them together." Sam said almost in a pleading voice.

Jen looked at Quinn and then she looked at Sam. "What if we put part of our plan into action tonight? If Jake does show up to hang out with her, you and Quinn can start acting like a couple."

"That's a brilliant plan Jen, but there's only one thing wrong with that theory," said Quinn.

"And that would be…"

"I know for a fact that Jake isn't coming to the mall tonight. He told me he was staying home tonight."

"Then that means Kate isn't meeting up with Jake here," said Sam happily. "But then who is she waiting for dressed up like that?"

"Maybe she's waiting for her friends or something," Quinn said.

"I don't think so. She's wearing a very short dress, unless her and her friends are going to some party," said Jen.

The three of them sat at the food court for another twenty minutes wondering what Kate Sanley was doing there. Finally Kate got up and walked out of the food court. After Kate got up Sam, Jen, and Quinn also left the food court.

"That was weird," said Jen as they walked around the mall. "The way she was sitting and looking up every couple of seconds made me think she was waiting for someone. I was so positive she was waiting for Jake, but Quinn said he's at home tonight."

The other two shook their heads in agreement. They continued walking around the mall and were just window shopping now. They passed a clothes store that had a beautiful evening gown in the window. It was a dark blue shimmering gown. Sam stared at it and wondered what it would be like to wear it and go to the Valentine's Dance with Jake. All of a sudden an idea struck Sam.

"Hey guys I have an idea," said Sam. "You know the Valentine's Dance that is two weeks away?" Jen and Quinn nodded their heads. "Well what if Quinn asked me to be his date and with all of the flirting at school that would drive Jake crazy. Maybe just crazy enough that he'll realize that he loves me and not Kate Sanley.

"That would be perfect," exclaimed Jen.

"I could see that working out," said Quinn.

The last place that the three went to in the mall was Tully's Western Shop. (**A/N: Is that right?**) Sam was looking for a new halter for Tempest. She found one that she really liked, but it was too expensive for her to buy. After Tully's Jen and Sam were window shopping again as they were walking out of the mall. Jen had stopped to look at a cute sweater in a display case in front of American Eagle. Sam turned away from the display case and looked across the mall. What she saw made her think she had lost her mind.

"Hey Jen, am I seeing things or is that what I think it is?"

Jen looked to where Sam was looking and said "Sam you're not seeing things. That's Kate Sanley making out with some guy who obviously isn't Jake. Hey Quinn did Jake and Kate break up?" asked Jen sarcastically.

Sam was looking at Kate and her mystery man making out in the middle of the mall. She felt kind of bad. She should be so happy to have a reason why Jake shouldn't go out with that girl and instead of feeling happy, she felt sad.

"Hey Sam what's wrong?" asked Jen.

"I should be feeling so happy Jen and I'm not. I hate Kate, but I actually thought she truly loved Jake and wouldn't do anything to hurt him. Do you know how much this will hurt Jake if he ever finds out?"

"Don't feel bad Sam. This just proves our point that Kate Sanley is an evil girl and is all wrong for Jake. We could also be overreacting. Maybe the guy is a cousin or something," said Jen.

"Jen if that was her cousin, would she be French kissing the guy like that? I don't think so."

Jen looked over at the couple that was French kissing. "Okay so maybe we aren't overreacting."

After watching Kate make out with the mystery man they broke apart. "We could use this guy to our advantage," said Jen suddenly.

"What are you thinking Jen?" asked Sam

"We could get to know him and then tell him we're friends of Kate's and invite him to the Valentine's Dance. Also Jake won't feel hurt because by then he'll realize that he loves you and will feel betrayed by Kate. Actually this just makes the plan more fun really."

With that Jen went over to the mystery guy who was still standing there. Kate had left a little while ago. While Jen was talking to the mystery man Sam decided to ask Quinn something.

"Quinn, do you think we should tell Jake about Kate tonight?" asked Sam.

"I don't think we should say anything to him yet, and if we don't tell him, it will make the dance even more interesting with the plan and all."

Sam thought about what he had said. If they didn't tell Jake then the plan would go even better and Jake wouldn't get hurt yet.

"I won't tell Jake either. He'd probably think I was making it up or something anyways," said Sam.

While Jen was talking to Kate's mystery guy, Sam was lost in deep thought. She couldn't believe that Kate Sanley could be so evil. Sure the girl was always mean to Sam at school, but to cheat on a decent guy like Jake was unthinkable to Sam. Didn't Kate realize she had the perfect boyfriend in Jake? He would never cheat on Kate, but obviously Kate would. Obviously Jake wasn't good enough for the spoiled little princess. Kate had to find another guy to have fun with besides. Kate didn't know how lucky she was, and probably would never know either. Sam just wanted to get Kate out of Jake's life and save him from the heartache that Kate Sanley would give to him.

Sam realized that Jen was back and was talking to Quinn. She had been so lost in her own thoughts about how evil Kate was she hadn't realized that Jen had come back from talking to Kate's mystery man.

"What did Kate's mystery man have to say?" asked Sam.

"A lot," Jen took a deep breathe and then continued. "His name is Matt Whittles. He's a junior in high school and goes to a school in Reno. He is Kate's boyfriend and drove to Darton to surprise her and to spend the weekend with her. I told him I was a good friend of Kate's. I told him my name was Daisy because Daisy is Kate's best friend and he has never met Daisy. Anyways I told him how much Kate loves surprises and said he should come for the Valentine's Dance and surprise Kate. He said he would love to come and to surprise Kate."

"Wow," said Quinn.

"So Kate has a boyfriend in Reno and is cheating on him also with Jake. That girl has some serious issues," said Sam.

"The dance should be fun. What if Kate lost both of her boyfriends on the same night?" said Quinn.

"That would be perfect," said Sam. "Kate would deserve losing both of her boyfriends for cheating on both of them." Said Sam

"The next two weeks are going to be interesting," said Jen with a smile.

"Let's go home, the last couple of hours have made me tired," said Sam.

The other two agreed and the three friends left the mall. Quinn dropped the girls off at Harmony Ranch.


	5. Chapter 4:Part 1 of the Plan

Hey everyone! Sorry I haven't been able to update this story as fast as I would like. My life has been very hectic lately. Enjoy!!!

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Chapter 4: Part 1 of the Plan

The next day was Saturday. The girls were up early helping with the morning chores on Harmony Ranch. Sam and Jen hadn't stayed up late the night before. They had talked about what had happened at the mall and then had gone to bed. After the girls finished their morning chores they went back into Jen's bedroom. Jen started writing out the final plans that Sam and Quinn would follow for Sam to get Jake to notice her. Sam didn't really see why they had to write it down, but Jen said it would help them stay organized and on track.

The first couple of days at school Sam would hang out with Quinn, and flirt with him. They would also hold hands in between classes and make sure that Jake saw them. After a couple of days of this Quinn would ask Sam to be his date for the Valentine's Dance. Then after he asked her to be his date for the dance she would act like a romantic school girl around Quinn. At the dance Matt Wheattles would surprise Kate, but find her dancing with Jake. Then Kate would have an interesting time explaining to Matt what she was doing with Jake. Sam smiled as she thought about the plan. She couldn't wait for the dance.

"Do you think we're missing anything?" asked Sam

"I don't think so." Jen looked over what she had just written. "This is more like a guideline anyway. We don't exactly know how we everybody is going to react in these situations, but I think we have estimated pretty good on the reactions though."

Sam was staring at her friend and wondering how she could make something so simple sound scientific. Then all of a sudden she heard a car horn honk from outside. Sam got up and looked out of Jen's bedroom window. Gram was waiting for her in the car.

"That's Gram. I've got to go." Sam started throwing the stuff she had brought along with her into her duffle bag. Jen started helping her and within a few minutes they had all of Sam's stuff in the duffle bag. Jen hugged her friend goodbye, and then Sam went to get into Gram's car.

On the ride home Gram asked Sam how her sleepover was. Sam gave Gram a vague overview and purposely left out the parts of her trying to get Jake to notice her. She didn't like talking about boys with Gram or family. But then again does any girl like talking about whom they like with their family?

When they got home Sam had to do her own chores. Nobody had done them for her. Her dad said that doing her chores helped her become stronger and helped her realize that hard work was good for her. So she had to muck out the stalls and then put clean fresh straw down. While Sam was working on cleaning the stalls she let her mind wander back to last night. She still couldn't get the picture of Kate Sanley kissing Matt Wheattles out of her mind. If she already had a boyfriend, then what was she doing with Jake? Sam wanted to tell Jake that Kate was cheating on him, but knew from past experience that he would just get mad and then wouldn't talk to her for awhile. The last thing Sam wanted was for the two of them not talking to each other. That's why she pretended to like Kate in the first place when she was around Jake. She missed being able to tell Jake everything like they used to. When they were little she would always confide in him. But now that they were older things became more complicated and she couldn't tell him everything. At least she had Jen now and she could always count on Jen to be there when she needed someone to talk to, but it still wasn't the same as it used to be with Jake.

The rest of the weekend went by without anything interesting happening. On Monday morning Gram dropped Sam off at the bus stop. Jen was already there waiting. Sam walked over to her and Jen immediately started talking.

"So are you ready to start flirting with Quinn today?" Jen asked

"I'm ready as I can be," replied Sam. "But what if something goes wrong?"

"Nothing is going to go wrong. You flirt with Quinn and Jake starts getting jealous. You worry way too much Sam."

"I don't worry too much," replied Sam with a twinkle in her eye. "I usually worry because there's a reason too. But what if Jake ends up staying with Kate or Jake actually thinks I'm in love with his brother?" Sam said all this rather fast and frantically.

"Jake wouldn't stay with a girl who cheated on him Sam," said Jen in a very serious voice. "If he thinks you love his brother, that's when you tell him that you don't. You tell Jake that you only have feelings for him and not his brother. But for today you pretend you only have eyes for Quinn. It's all rather simple if you ask me."

Sam stared at her best friend and wondered how she could have so much confidence with a plan that could fall apart at anytime. Sam wondered if Jen was in her shoes if she would be feeling as confident as she was right now. The school bus came down the road and stopped at the bus stop. The two girls got on and sat down in their usual seat which was in the back of the bus.

Once they got to school they headed for their lockers right away. Sam threw her coat into her locker and grabbed her history book. Jen did the same, but grabbed more books than Sam and then threw them in her backpack.

"Hey guys," Quinn said as he came up to them.

"Hi Quinn," they both responded at the same time.

"Ready to start making Jake jealous?" asked Quinn

"Definitely!" said Sam enthusiastically. "Is Jake here yet?"

"Yeah," said Quinn looking over his shoulder. "He's over at his locker saying good morning to cheating Kate."

"You guys remember everything I told you about this stage of the plan?" asked Jen.

"Yes," responded Sam and Quinn in the same flat toneless voice. Jen had gone over this stage of the plan so many times they both could have done it in their sleep.

"Ready?" asked Quinn while extending his hand for Sam to take.

"Yup." Answered Sam and took Quinn's hand.

The two started walking down the main hallway in the school. People started mumbling as they passed people because it was a new couple and for some reason in high school everybody wants to know who's going out with whom. Finally the mumbling started to quiet down and Sam started feeling confident. She could walk down these halls and pretend that she was in love with the boy who was holding her hand. She would endure all the mumbling and pointing if it meant that she would one day be doing this same thing with the boy of her dreams.

Sam was once again lost in her own thoughts when she realized that Jake's locker was just ahead. Jake was at his locker saying good morning to Kate Sanley. His idea of saying good morning though was kissing her passionately. Sam wanted to punch Kate so bad right then and there, but managed to act cool. As she and Quinn passed them Jake stopped kissing Kate and just stared stupidly at his brother and Sam. Jake made eye contact with Sam, but Sam quickly looked away. She thought she saw an unnamed emotion in his eyes, but couldn't place it. As they passed Sam wanted to look behind her and see how Jake was reacting, but she didn't. She was being an actress and she couldn't show her real feelings. She had to pretend that she only had eyes for Quinn, like Jen had said earlier.

**Jake's P.O.V**

Jake was kissing his girlfriend Kate Sanley as a way of saying good morning. All the people by their lockers were mumbling about something but Jake wasn't paying attention to what they were saying. It was probably just boring high school gossip. All of a sudden a couple started walking down the hallway. As the couple got close Jake recognized his brother and Sam. He stopped kissing Kate and stared stupidly at Sam. When had Sam started going out with his brother and why? Kate was saying something, but Jake wasn't paying attention to a word she was saying. All Jake could do was stare at Sam and his brother as they walked down the hallway hand in hand. An emotion like jealousy came over Jake. But that was impossible. He didn't like Sam as more than just a friend right? Jake then remembered that he had a girlfriend and she was staring at him. He started talking to her, but the jealous feeling of seeing Sam with his brother didn't go away.

**Normal P.O.V**

Quinn dropped Sam off at her first hour class which was English. She said a quick goodbye to Quinn and then found her seat. A couple of minutes later Jen came in and sat down next to Sam.

"You should have seen Jake's face Sam!" Jen exclaimed loudly. "He was totally oblivious to everything around him except for kissing Kate and then when you guys walked down the hall it was like he was hit with something. After you guys were gone he was still staring down the hallway." The bell rang and their teacher Mrs. Tabson came in and Jen and Sam had to stop talking and pay attention to the lesson. They made plans to meet up at lunch.

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Please review. Let me know if you like it or hate it. If you have any suggestions I would love to hear them. Also at the dance I need some ideas for songs that should be played.

Westerncowgirl


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5:**

Jake's P.O.V

By lunchtime the whole school was buzzing about Sam and Quinn. Some people couldn't believe that Sam was going out with Quinn, especially Jake. All morning that's all Jake could think about was how his friend Sam was going out with his brother. He didn't think the two of them were that close, but obviously he was wrong. When had they become so close, and why hadn't he noticed it? Then Jake realized that he had been so caught up with Kate the last couple of weeks that he hadn't made anytime to notice these little details. He also realized that ever since he and Kate had started going out that he had blown Sam off a lot. He remembered her asking to go for rides together after school, but he always brushed her off because he had to take Kate home after school and then they would work on their homework together. Also deep down he really missed spending time with Sam and had actual feelings for her. He had to forget about those weird feelings, because he already had a girlfriend and her name wasn't Samantha.

Nobody's P.O.V

At lunchtime Sam met up with Jen at her locker. That morning had been pretty different from any other morning that Sam had spent at Darton High School. People who never would've spoken to her, came up to Sam in between classes and started talking to her as if they were long lost best friends. These people were only talking to her because she was going out with Quinn. Sam had known that Quinn was popular; she just didn't think his popularity would affect her. She definitely wasn't used to all the attention she was getting, and she wasn't sure if she liked it all that much. Jen brought Sam out of her troublesome thoughts.

"So how did you think it went this morning?" asked Jen curiously.

"I think it went pretty well." said Sam. "But when I looked at Jake he couldn't stop staring at me. The strange thing is that Kate was there and he completely ignored her," said Sam with a small grin. "But the rest of the morning was really weird. People who never talk to me came up to me and started talking as if we were best friends."

"Well you know that Quinn is pretty popular here," said Jen. "He always has been. So did you enjoy having random people coming up to you and talking to you?" asked Jen.

"Not really. I guess I didn't realized that by fake dating Quinn that I would get so much attention."

"Don't worry you're only fake dating Quinn for two weeks. Before you know it, it will be the dance."

"The dance should be fun." Said Sam.

The lunch bell rang and the girls got up and started for their next class. Sam had history next and Jen had calculus. During history Sam didn't pay much attention. A new thought had entered her head. Was what she was doing to get Jake right? Should she be trying to make him jealous of his brother, just so she could get Jake to notice her? Sam was starting to have second thoughts about this fake dating thing. She didn't like lying to Jake, and she didn't like all the attention she was getting from random people either. Sam was so lost in thought she didn't realize that the whole class was staring at her. Sam looked up to see the teacher, Mr. Felder looking at her.

"Sorry. Did you ask me a question?" asked Sam innocently, even thought she could feel herself blushing.

"Ms. Forester, I asked if you could tell us what year the Battle of Hastings took place."

Sam thought for a minute and then replied "1066." The teacher looked a little disappointed that she knew the correct answer. No doubt the teacher wanted her to get it wrong just so he could lecture her about not daydreaming. Sam was glad that she knew the right answer, so she didn't have to get one of Mr. Felder's long boring lectures.

As Sam was grinning about answering correctly Mr. Felder went into one of his long boring lectures about daydreaming. Great, Sam thought to herself. She hadn't been able to avoid the long boring lecture after all. But Sam just pretty much tuned him out. She caught some of his words every so often though. She caught the words 'daydreaming is bad' and 'need to pay attention to learn.' Sam disagreed with Mr. Felder though. Daydreaming wasn't bad, it was just the opposite. Daydreaming was fun and helped her from falling asleep during this boring class.

Halfway through Mr. Felder's lecture the bell rang, signaling the end of the class. Sam grabbed all of her books and threw them into her backpack and then walked quickly out of the classroom. She was glad to be free of all the lecturing. Sam was walking toward her seventh hour class when Jake caught up to her in the hallway. Sam was taken by surprise because Jake never usually acknowledged her at school. What was even more surprising was that Jake was alone without his clingy girlfriend Kate.

"Hey Jake," replied Sam happily.

"Hey Brat," Jake replied back sullenly. Sam was staring at Jake and noticed that he didn't look too happy. Sam was wondering if her 'going out' with his brother was annoying him.

"I was wondering if you wanted to go for a ride after school," asked Jake quietly.

"Sure," answered Sam quickly. She was happy that Jake actually wanted to do something with her again. Ever since he had started dating Kate he hadn't done much with her. They hadn't gone riding together for a long time. Sam always asked, but Jake's answer was always something he had to do with Kate.

"I'll meet you at Riverbend around 4:00," said Jake. "Then we can talk and catch up a little." With that Jake left Sam standing there confused. The way Jake had said they would talk, Sam knew that he was going to ask her about going out with his brother. Sam really didn't think that fake dating his brother was such a good idea anymore. Sam quickly walked to her next class and made it as the bell rang.

After school Sam and Jen were riding the bus home. Sam was going to tell Jen that she wasn't going to fake date Quinn anymore. During her last hour class Sam had thought of a new plan. This plan Sam thought would accomplish the same goal, but it didn't include fake dating. Jen was talking about her calculus class and Sam didn't even try to follow what Jen was saying. By the sounds of it calculus sounded confusing and Sam was glad that she wasn't taking it. Algebra II was hard enough for Sam as it was. Eventually Jen stopped talking about calculus. This was the chance Sam needed to tell Jen that the plan was off.

"I've decided that I'm not going to fake date Quinn anymore," replied Sam nervously. "It doesn't feel right and I don't like lying to Jake. "Besides that I don't like all the popularity that comes with fake dating Quinn." Jen looked at Sam and was wondering if she was hearing her best friend correctly. She was calling off the plan to get the guy she loved to notice her.

"Why Sam?" asked Jen confusedly.

"I just told you why," said Sam. "Besides I have a new plan that I thought of."

"Really? What is it?" asked Jen curiously.

"Well I'm going out riding after chores with Jake tonight…"

"Really?" asked Jen. "He isn't going to go spend his precious time with his girlfriend? He is actually remembering his old friend all of a sudden?" Jen said all of this very sarcastically.

"Yes we are going riding," replied Sam impatiently. "If you're done interrupting me, I'll continue on with my new plan."

"Go ahead, I'll be quiet while you explain your master plan." Replied Jen.

"Like I said Jake came up to me after sixth hour and asked if I wanted to go riding after school with him. He said that he wanted to talk and catch up. Anyway the way he said we'll talk sounded like we'll talk about you going out with my brother. I knew then that I couldn't pretend to fake date Quinn anymore."

"Sam is there a point to rambling on like this, or are you going to tell me the new plan?" asked Jen.

" I thought you weren't going to interrupt me anymore?" said Sam seriously.

"I can't help it," said Jen stifling a laugh. "You should know that it's very hard for me to be quiet and not to interrupt." Then Sam and Jen both burst out laughing because they both knew that Jen being quiet was impossible. People on the bus turned in their seats to see who was laughing and wondering if the two best friends were insane.

"You're right," replied Sam still laughing. "You can't be quiet at times. Anyways my grand plan is this. I tell Jake that I only flirted with his brother to get a date to the Valentine's Day dance. Because you can only go if you have a date right? So then I tell him that after the flirting didn't work, I just asked Quinn if he would take me to the dance, so I could go. Then of course Quinn agrees to take me because he feels sorry for me and he decides to take me out of the goodness of his heart. But there will also be some jealousy on Jake's part hopefully when he sees me at the dance with his brother having a good time. Brilliant right?

"Sam I don't really see how this is a new plan. It's more like an alternate plan. You're still going to make Jake jealous and you're still going to get the popularity at school. You might not be dating Quinn, but you're still going to be his date for the dance and that's almost the same thing." Sam looked at Jen in shock.

"I never thought of it that way before. It really isn't a new plan is it?"

"Nope," replied Jen.

"Well if it makes me feel better about not lying to Jake, it works right? I mean he won't be mad at me now, because he will know that I don't love his brother, but still going with Quinn will make him jealous. It's like a safer way for me without Jake yelling at me or hating me forever. Right?" Sam said all this rather fast and a little confusedly.

"I guess it works," said Jen thinking hard. "Why didn't we think of this sooner though? Now we have to readjust parts of the plan, and we'll have to let Quinn know that we altered it a little bit. Jake better realize he loves you after all of this is over and done with, because we are working really hard to make this plan work."

"I hope Jake realizes he loves me too after all this hard work. Otherwise all this planning is a waste of time. But still we have to try, because you never know what will happen. Are you going to tell Quinn that we changed the plan should I?" Said Sam.

"I'll tell Quinn that you didn't want Jake to kill you, so you decided to alter the plan to ease your conscience."

"That works for me." Replied Sam quietly.

The bus stopped at their stop and the two girls got off the bus and went their separate ways to their homes.


	7. Chapter 6: The Ride

Hey everyone! Sorry I haven't updated this story in almost a year. So many crazy things have been going on and I didn't have any ideas on how to continue it. But thankfully one day recently I got an idea and have been going with it, so I hope you all like it. Also I want to thank everybody who has reviewed this story so far and stuck with it. It means so much to me. I hope you enjoy this chapter and I already have the next chapter typed up so if I get enough reviews I'll probably upload it yet today. Enjoy!!

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Chapter 6: The Ride

Once Sam got home from school she quickly went upstairs and changed into her work clothes. She did her chores very fast and was done with them by 3:45. That left her 15 minutes before she had to meet Jake. Sam dashed back into the house and changed into her riding clothes that didn't smell like horse manure. By the time Sam got downstairs, Jake was just riding into the yard. He looked so good to Sam sitting on his mare Witch. Sam was excited and a little nervous about going for her ride with Jake. She knew that he would bring up everything involving her and Quinn.

As Sam was walking out the door she kept telling herself that she had gone riding a million times with Jake and she shouldn't be nervous at all. After all she was only Jake's friend and not girlfriend, so there really wasn't anything to be nervous about anyways. As much as Sam tried to remember her useful advice she couldn't help but forget about it and was a little nervous around Jake. As she walked towards Jake and Witch she plastered a big, confident smile on her face. She smiled at Jake and stopped by him on Witch.

"Hi Jake," said Sam. To her ears she sounded like she was breathless and hoped that Jake didn't notice. "I have to go and saddle Ace," she quickly told him. She knew she had started to blush a little and was glad to go to the ten acre pasture to go get Ace. She let the cold wind cool her flaming cheeks. She caught Ace quickly and got him saddled.

"Where are we riding to?" asked Sam.

"I was thinking of riding out towards War Drum Flatts," said Jake.

Sam nodded her head to let Jake know that she had heard him. For the first ten minutes they rode in silence. Sam didn't like the silence between them, but knew if she waited long enough Jake would eventually tell her what was on his mind. She was determined not to make a sound until Jake talked. Sam had played this game many times with Jake and would always be the first to make a sound because she wasn't very patient. Today however, Sam won the game. They were halfway to War Drum Flatts when Jake decided to break the awkward silence between them.

"Why are you going out with my brother?" He asked Sam quietly. Sam could've sworn there was sadness in his voice but dismissed it to her imagination. She only thought she had heard it was because she wanted to believe it. She decided to give Jake her truthful answer.

"I needed a date for the Valentine's Dance," replied Sam calmly. All of a sudden Jake stopped Witch and turned toward Sam and in a very serious tone asked

"Are you in love with Quinn?" Sam was taken aback by the question and before she could she could think of a clever comment, instead blurted out

"Do you love Kate?" Sam realized her mistake and quickly mumbled 'sorry'. She took a deep breath and answered Jake in a surprisingly calm voice

"I love your brother, but only as a friend. The person I love is yo…is someone else," replied Sam. She couldn't believe she had almost told him that she loved him. Luckily she had been able to catch herself in time before anything atrocious could happen. Sam realized she had to think before she opened her mouth or even better maybe keep her mouth shut. Sam knew that she would never be able not to talk, but she could think before she acted.

Jake looked towards Sam curiously. Jake felt immensely relieved that she didn't love his brother but was still wondering why Quinn and Sam were hanging out so much at school and acting all 'coupley' with each other in the halls. He decided to ask Sam about that.

"If you don't love Quinn, then why have you been acting like you were going out with him at school?"

"Well… I've acting that way with Quinn because I needed a date for the Valentine's Dance and I begged Quinn to take me, otherwise you can't go to the dance without a date," said Sam. "I also have been acting that way because I thought if I kind of fake dated Quinn the guy I like at school might notice me, but I was wrong."

Sam looked a little sad as she said that part. Sam also realized that Jake hadn't answered her question about if he loved Kate or not, so she decided to ask him again

"So you never answered my question from earlier about Kate," said Sam.

Jake was quiet for a moment and than replied "Of course I love her. Why wouldn't I love my girlfriend?"

Sam nodded her head to Jake's answer and felt even sadder than she had before. She knew that would most likely be Jake's answer, but she secretly had been hoping that he would tell her that he didn't love Kate and that he loved Sam and only Sam.

While Sam was wishing for a different answer from Jake, Jake was lost in his own thoughts as well. He was wondering if he had told Sam the truth. Kate was his girlfriend and he certainly liked her, otherwise he wouldn't be dating her. But did he truly love her? If Jake was being honest with himself he knew deep down in his heart that he didn't love Kate.

The other thing that Jake couldn't get his mind off of was who Sam liked at school. She had said that she liked somebody at school, but they didn't like her back. He couldn't help but feel a little upset that the guy Sam was pining for didn't return her affections. _What guy wouldn't love Sam?_ thought Jake a little darkly. He would love to make the guy Sam liked see what a wonderful girl Sam was by punching him or something.

By this time the two friends had made their way to War Drum Flatts. They were still silent lost in their own turbulent thoughts. They both didn't feel like stopping so they turned back around and headed back to River Bend Ranch. Finally Jake broke the silence between them again.

"So who's the guy you like at school?" asked Jake casually. That question had been running through his mind for the last twenty minutes and decided to ask it.

Sam laughed before answering Jake "Why would I tell you who I like?" Sam couldn't believe that he had asked her that question. She couldn't possibly tell him the truth without it being a little awkward. She was also amazed that Jake was talking so much today. Usually Jake was so silent that it was like pulling teeth to get him just to say a sentence.

(A/N: Jakes is in bold when talking and Sam is in normal font.)

"**Do I know the guy you like?" asked Jake. **

"Yes," answered Sam smiling to herself secretly.

"**Is he in your grade?" **

"No."

"**Is he one of my friends?"**

"Could be."

"**Come on Sam; just tell me who he is already." **

"I could tell you, but I don't feel like it."

Jake was getting frustrated and realized that it was useless to ask Sam who she liked. She was the most stubborn girl he knew and it was pointless to argue with her. A sudden thought entered his head.

"**You don't like Darrel, do you?" **

"WHAT!!" exclaimed Sam loudly. "No way. He's too annoying for anybody to like. The guy I like will know it someday and won't be that stupid."

Jake was once again relieved that Sam didn't like Darrel, but it was going to bug him until he knew who Sam liked. Jake also wondered why he was so obsessed with who Sam liked. Could it be because he secretly loved her but wouldn't admit it? Jake banished the thought almost as soon as he thought of it. But for some odd reason that thought wouldn't leave him alone. Funny thing about the truth is that it never leaves us alone when we don't want to admit the truth is right.

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Later that night Sam was in her bedroom finishing up her Algebra II homework. Sam didn't real care that x was bigger than y. To her Algebra II was a lot of nonsense. When would she seriously ever use Algebra II again in her life? Probably never but she still had to do the pointless homework. As she finished the last problem she slammed the heavy book shut and laid back on her bed sighing in contentment. She was finally done with the dreaded homework. She could now relax and let her mind wander freely.

She turned her radio on which was tuned to one of the many country stations that she loved so much. Sam heard the radio DJ say

"The number one song on the top 8 at 8 is Taylor Swift with her current hit 'Teardrops on my Guitar '."

With that the song started to play and Sam listened to it contently. That song reminded her of Jake and herself. How she wanted and needed what Jake was to her. _Funny how this song describes my situation with Jake_, Sam thought a little bitterly. She loved the song even though it made her feel a little sad. After the song finished Sam kept thinking about it, about Jake, about how she probably would never end with him. But Sam didn't like to give up on things. Maybe that song did describe her and Jake, but she would make their story end up with a happy ending instead of nothing. Sam was suddenly determined that the dance would be special and that she would end up with Jake before it was over. She couldn't wait for that night to come.

Like it? Hate it? Hit the little review button and let me know what you think, or what you want to see happen.


	8. Chapter7:Confrontations

Chapter 7: Confrontations

_Three days before the dance_

The first thing Sam saw as she entered the school was Kate Sanley talking to all of her prissy friends. _I would love to tell her off_ thought Sam to herself. Sam was walking by Kate when she suddenly called Sam over by her. Sam was surprised that Kate was talking to her, but she went over by Kate to see what she wanted.

"Samantha darling, could I talk to you for a minute?" Kate asked.

"Sure," replied Sam a little hesitantly.

The two girls walked a little way down the hallway, away from all of Kate's prissy annoying friends. Once they were far enough away from everybody Kate dropped the nice girl act.

"Samantha Forester you better stay away from my boyfriend or you'll be one sad, little cowgirl."

Sam was taken by surprise at Kate's words. Who did this spoiled little princess think she was anyways? She was actually telling her to stay away from one of her best friends and threatening her. Kate wasn't only a cheater; she was also a very mean, jealous girl. Sam was mad at the very least and couldn't believe that this was Jake's girlfriend. _I'm way better for Jake than this girl is_ Sam thought to herself silently. Sam decided that being nice to Kate wasn't an option anymore. So Sam asked in an innocent voice

"Which one Kate? Jake or the secret Matt Whittles?"

Sam had the satisfaction of seeing Kate's face freeze at the mention of Matt Whittles name. Her face was white as a sheet and for one moment Sam thought that she might faint. Unfortunately a minute later Kate regained her composure and was madder than ever.

"I don't know how you know about Matt, but I swear if you tell Jake I'll make the rest of your days here at this school a living nightmare. You can bet on that you filthy little cowgirl."

With that Kate started walking away down the hallway. But she turned back towards Sam and added "If I see you talking to Jake at this school I'll also make you wish she had never come to this school."

Kate continued walking down the hallway and rejoined her friends by their lockers. Sam mumbled under her breath, "The only filthy thing around here is you Kate Sanley."

Sam walked to her own locker and before even opening it up she kicked her locker and had the small satisfaction of seeing a dent in it now. Her left foot hurt from it connecting with the locker but Sam didn't feel the pain. All she wanted to do was punch Kate Sanley's perfect little nose.

Jen was at her locker which was next to Sam's.

"Wow, somebody's upset this morning aren't we."

Sam stared at her friend and filled her in on the whole Kate threatening her not to talk to Jake thing. Jen couldn't believe that Kate would actually threaten Sam like that. Jen was just as mad as Sam was. Jen wanted to hurt Kate just as much as Sam did, but both girls knew that they couldn't. They would probably get suspended or something like that from school and neither girl could afford that to happen to them. So the two fuming friends headed towards their first hour English class.

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By lunchtime Sam's anger was still fresh and just the sight of Kate Sanley holding Jake's hand was enough to make Sam's blood boil. She was still in disbelief that the prissy princess didn't want her around Jake. Jen was by now much more calmed down and was trying to calm her best friend down. Jen tried as hard as she could but she didn't make any real progress. Jen tried to soothe her friend, but in the end gave up. She listened to Sam rant on and on about it and thought maybe it was for the best. At least Sam was talking about it and that was always a good sign.

Eventually Sam ran out of words and just slumped down on the hard cafeteria table. She put her head on the table and didn't move for the rest of the lunch period. Jen was concerned about her friend and was glad when Quinn came over and sat down next to them. Sam didn't even acknowledge that she had heard Quinn come over to talk to them.

Jen quickly filled Quinn in on everything and he was just as mad and speechless as she herself had been earlier that day. They quietly talked about it, trying not to disturb Sam.

(A/N: Jen is in bold, and Quinn is in normal font)

"How does she expect Sam to stay away from Jake?" asked Quinn

"**I don't know. One thing I do know is that Kate Sanley is evil."**

"Did Kate tell Jake to stay away from Sam then too, because I don't believe Jake would listen to her at all on that"

**Jen looked thoughtful before answering "I don't know. We have to do something about this though. I think it's time you talked to Jake and tell him that his darling princess is really an evil witch."**

"I think you're right. It's time to set my little brother straight. I'll talk to him after lunch."

Jen nodded her head and looked over at Sam. She would be all right, she knew. But she still worried about her. The bell rang and Jen silently shook her friend awake and together they headed out of the cafeteria towards their sixth hour classes. Quinn stayed behind at the table looking for his brother across the cafeteria. He finally spotted him and got up and started walking towards him.

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Across the cafeteria at the beginning of the lunch period Jake walked into the cafeteria. He didn't see Kate yet, but instantly saw Sam ranting to Jen about something. Even from the distance across the cafeteria he could tell that Sam was really mad. He wondered what could've made her that mad to begin with.

He decided to see what was up and started walking towards Sam's table. He was about halfway to her table when he felt a sharp tug on his shirt. Jake turned around and saw Kate standing there holding his arm. He actually felt annoyed that she was there. His friend was mad, and yet he had to deal with his rather demanding girlfriend.

"What do you want?" he asked his girlfriend a little gruffly.

Kate smiled her perfect perky little smile and batted her fake little eyelashes and said "It's lunchtime honey and you're walking in the wrong direction. Our table is over there" Kate pointed with one of her perfectly manicured fingers.

"I know," said Jake as calmly as he could. "I saw Sam over there and she looked really upset and I wanted to make sure she was okay."

"Oh don't worry about her honey; I'm sure she's perfectly fine. Besides she probably doesn't want to talk to you. " Kate was trying hard to get Jake's attention off of Sam and back onto herself. She started tugging on Jake's shirt again and they started walking back towards their table.

"I don't know," said Jake a little hesitantly. "Maybe I should go check on her."

"She'll be alright and besides it's lunchtime and I'm starving." Kate was trying to be patient, but she was starting to loose her patients. Finally Jake gave in and they continued onto their table. Before they reached their table Kate said "Can I talk to you after school about something Jakie?

Jake hated it when she called him that but decided to let it go.

"You can talk to me now," said Jake.

"There are too many people in here and I don't want to be overheard."

Jake finally gave in and said "Sure." With that the two started to eat their lunches. The lunch between the two was a little tense. They didn't talk much and it was almost awkward. Jake looked across the cafeteria towards Sam. He was surprised to see that she was done ranting and that she had her head on the table. He was really worried about her and would see what was wrong with at the end of lunch.

Finally the bell rang and gave Jake a chance to get away from the awkward silence that had come between him and Kate. Jake was trying to get to Sam and Jen to see what was up, but before he could get to them he noticed his brother, Quinn walking towards him.

(A/N: Jake is bold and Quinn is normal font)

"**Hey Quinn,"** Jake said. Maybe he would know what was wrong with Sam, since he was in a way fake dating Sam. **"Do you know what's wrong with Sam, by any chance?"** he asked.

"I might," said Quinn casually.

"**What is it?"** Jake asked

"Little brother we seriously have to talk." said Quinn.

"**What about?"** asked Jake carefully. When Quinn was this serious it was usually something bad.

"About your girlfriend."

"**What about her?"** Jake asked a little defensively. He knew that Quinn didn't like his girlfriend, but up until now they never had really talked about it.

"Your charming princess isn't so charming after all," said Quinn in a determined voice. "She told Samantha this morning that she couldn't see you or talk to you and even threatened her if she saw Sam talking to you."

"**That's not true; Kate wouldn't do something like that."**

"Well she did and she got Sam pretty upset too."

Jake stared at his brother in disbelief. That couldn't be true, it just couldn't be. Kate couldn't be that mean. Sure she had her faults, but threatening his best friend wasn't one of them. But as Jake thought about it he knew it was. Kate hadn't wanted him to talk to Sam at lunch and had made him stay clear of Sam. And every time he had brought Sam up lately she would turn the conversation around to something else. Isn't that why lunch had been so tense today to begin with?

"**I can't believe she would do that to Sam. Sam hasn't even done anything to her. How could've I've been so wrong?"**

"Hey it's okay," said Quinn calmly. "That's why you have me around, so I can tell you when your girlfriend is a crazy psycho."

Jake laughed at his brother's response and knew what he had to do after school today.

"**Thanks. I guess I was wrong about Kate all along then."**

"Just a little," answered Quinn. "Since we're being honest Kate was cheating on you with an out of state boyfriend. His name was Matt Whittles or something like that. We kind of found out about him by accident when we went to the mall and saw Kate making out with the guy."

"**She was cheating on me too?!" **

Jake couldn't believe all of this. His girlfriend had ordered his best friend away and then was seeing another guy behind his back. For once his older brother was right about something. In the back of Jake's mind he couldn't help but think about poor Sam. All he could think about was the pain and misery that Kate must've put her through this morning. He had to make sure Sam was okay.

Jake realized that he and Quinn were the only ones left in the cafeteria. He was surprised when he looked at the clock. Class had started fifteen minutes ago and he and Quinn were both really late for their class. Once their mother found out about this she wouldn't be too happy, but Jake didn't really care. He wanted to make sure that Sam was okay, but he wouldn't be able to do that until later. So with those thoughts in his mind he headed for his sixth hour class and Quinn followed after him.

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Like it? Hate it? Please review and let me know!!


	9. The Breakup

Chapter 8: The Breakup

Jake was in his last hour class waiting for the bell to ring. He knew what he had to do after school and it made him a little nervous. He knew he was doing the right thing, but it still hurt him to know that the girl he had been dating had only been playing with his emotions. Jake was more worried about keeping his temper around Kate though. He hated it when people took advantage of him and his friends. Maybe he would be able to keep himself calm enough not to strangle Kate, at least he hoped so.

Finally the final bell rang and Jake collected his stuff and headed towards his locker. As he neared his locker he saw that Kate was already there waiting for him. Just seeing Kate at his locker made Jake feel upset. After today Kate would never be hanging around his locker anymore. Jake was about to open his mouth to tell Kate that they were so over, but he realized that Kate was already talking a mile a minute at him.

"Jake we have to talk," said Kate in a serious voice. "I think you've been spending way too much time with Samantha and not nearly enough time with me. I don't want you to see Samantha ever again. You can't talk to her, see her, or interact with her in anyway. I think this is the best for us."

Jake clenched his hands into fists. How could she seriously think that she could control who he decided to hang out with and who didn't? Then he realized another thing: Kate was making what he had to do much easier. She had just given him the perfect opening that he needed. He took a deep breath and counted to ten to stay calm and then said

"Kate I'm not going to stop seeing Samantha just because you want me to. She's one of my best friends and if you don't like her then that's your problem, not mine."

Kate stared at Jake in disbelief. She couldn't believe that Jake wasn't listening to her at all. She then decided to retort back

"But you have to stay away from her Jake. I mean it. I'm your girlfriend and you have to do what I say."

Jake was getting really angry. Kate couldn't boss him around anymore and Jake wondered why he had let her boss him around for so long anyway.

"I don't have to do anything you tell me to Kate. I have my own mind and can think for myself." Jake looked into Kate's evil eyes and said "I'm breaking up with you."

Kate stared at Jake in disbelief again. Of all the things she expected Jake to say it certainly wasn't those awful words. _This can't be happening to me _thought Kate over and over again. For awhile she was completely speechless. She decided that she must've heard Jake wrong. Yes that was it, Kate was sure of it. She had only imagined those awful words. Kate got her voice back and said

"What? I thought I heard you say you wanted to break up with me, but that's impossible. Nobody ever wants to break up with me. I'm perfect. I must've misheard you before."

Jake was finally starting to see the real Kate. The Kate that he thought he knew was just an act to go out with him. This girl who had once been his girlfriend was nothing more than a prissy, demanding princess. He had had enough of Kate and all of her games and just wanted her out of his life for good.

"No princess you heard me correctly," said Jake slowly emphasizing his words, so Kate would understand them. "I'm breaking up with you. We're done, we're over, and we're no more Kate."

"This is not happening," said Kate with tears and rage in her evil eyes. "This is just some crazy dream and I'll wake up soon from it."

"Kate this isn't a crazy dream. How many times do I have to tell you that I'm breaking up with you?"

"Why are you breaking up with me?" asked Kate finally realizing that this wasn't a crazy dream after all. "We're so perfect together and besides the dance is only three days away. If you break up with me now we'll never be voted Valentine Prince and Princess." Kate kept babbling on about stuff like this and when she finally stopped she looked at Jake searching for the answers to her questions.

"The thing is we're not so perfect together Kate," said Jake in a solemn voice. "You don't want me talking to my best friend and all you care about is being voted Valentine Princess and I don't care about that kind of stuff. In fact I hate that kind of stuff. But the main reason I'm breaking up with you is because you don't respect my friends and I found out that you've been cheating on me with some guy named Matt Whittles."

Jake couldn't believe he just said so many words at once. If Sam was around she would've told him that he had used up all of his words for the month. He had missed those types of comments from Sam from all the time he had spent with Kate.

Kate stared at Jake and looked very pale. She didn't know what to say and just continued to stare at Jake in silent anger. She had no idea how Jake had found out about Matt. _It must've been that filthy little cowgirl_ thought Kate to herself. She had seen Sam and her friends at the mall when she had met up with Matt there. That little filthy cowgirl would pay for this Kate thought. Finally Kate was composed enough to speak.

"I don't know how you know about Matt, but I guess it doesn't matter anymore. If you want to break up then I guess that's what we'll do. We're over and I never want to see you or Samantha again. You and that filthy little cowgirl will be sorry that you ever messed with Kate Sanley."

With that Kate slammed Jake's locker shut, glared at Jake with venom in her eyes and walked briskly down the hallway. Luckily only a few people had witnessed the downfall of Kate Sanley, but to Kate that was still too many witnesses. By tomorrow everybody would know that Jake Ely has broken up with her, Kate Sanley. Nobody ever broke up with Kate and lived to tell the tale. Kate was the one who broke hearts. She promised to herself she would get Jake and Sam back at the Valentine's Dance. She would just have to get Matt to take her now though.

Jake watched his ex-girlfriend walk down the hallway and still couldn't believe that he hadn't seen the real Kate until today. How could he have dated that girl? Jake was just glad that it was all over with now. He was still staring at Kate walking when she slipped and broke a heel on her pink high heels. He didn't feel sorry for her at all. Instead he felt like he was free for the first time in a very long time.

Just want to say thanks to everybody who has reviewed the last couple of chapters. Your reviews really inspire me to write more and update more often, so please review.


	10. Chapter 9: Secrets Not Kept

Chapter 9: Secrets Not Kept

After a long day full of drama, Jake sat down on his bed and put his head in his hands. He couldn't believe all of the events that had happened in one day. He had called Sam earlier in the evening to see if she was okay. He had been relieved to find out that she was doing much better than she had been earlier in the day and she had seemed concerned about him. He hadn't told her about his breakup with Kate yet. For some weird reason he wanted to tell her in person about the breakup. It was important that he tell her that he broke up with Kate and that he was falling in love with her.

The dance was now only two days away and he no longer had a date. He really wanted to ask Sam to the dance, but his brother was already taking her. He had to go to the dance and tell Sam how he truly felt about her. He had to tell her that he had been wrong about Kate the entire time.

Jake knew he had to get a date to be able to go to the dance, so he could confess his feelings to Sam. All of a sudden Jake thought of a way to get a date for the dance, but hated the idea. There had to be another way, but he realized that there wasn't. He dreaded what he had to do, but he needed to be at that dance. _The things people do for those they love_, thought Jake sourly. Jake slowly picked up the phone on the table and dialed a number he thought he would never have to dial.

At Harmony Ranch Jen heard the phone ringing and decided to answer it since nobody else was in the house. When she picked up the phone she was very surprised to hear the voice of Jake Ely on the other side.

"What do you want Ely?" asked Jen defensively. "I'm trying to get my homework and other important things done."

On the other end of the phone Jake sighed before answering. He hated talking to Jen on the phone because she was always defensive and had a very short temper with him. He decided he would just get to the point right away.

"Listen Kenworthy, I don't want to waste your time. I need to ask you to do a favor for me," said Jake quietly.

On the other side of the phone Jen was smiling wickedly to herself. The big, gruff silent cowboy was asking her for help. _Jake must be really desperate to be calling me for help _thought Jen. Depending on what this favor of Jake's was maybe she could use this to her advantage for her best friend.

"I'll help you, but it depends on what I would have to do," said Jen.

Jake started to feel embarrassed and shy about what he was going to tell Jen next. She would mostly think that he was crazy and tell him off, or she would totally flip out on him.

"Jen, what I'm about to tell you, you can't tell anybody."

Jen's curiosity was indeed peeked now. What could Jake Ely possibly tell her that nobody could know of? Jen decided to go with it and just see what was so top secret.

"Fine. I won't tell anybody your secret. So what is this so called secret of yours anyways?"

Jake took a deep breath. "After school today, me and Kate got into a big fight. She was talking bad about Sam, so I broke up with her."

"Wait a second," exclaimed Jen in an excited breath. "You mean to tell me, you broke up with Kate after school? That's your big bad secret?"

"That's not the entire secret Jen," said Jake slowly. "I broke up with Kate because I realized today that I don't love her. I love Sam."

At these words Jen dropped the phone onto the floor. Had she just heard Jake tell her that he broke up with Kate because he loved Sam? What the heck was going on? All of a sudden she realized that Jake was still talking to her.

"Jen, did you hear what I said?" Jake said slowly, as if talking to a small child who didn't understand.

"Yes I heard you," replied Jen in a huff. "I just didn't think I heard you say the words that I thought I heard you say. Did you really just say that you broke up with Kate, because you're in love with Sam?"

"Yes," replied Jake slowly and clearly. Jake was starting to worry about Jen. She wasn't taking this news well at all and he still hadn't gotten to ask his favor yet.

Jen sat down and was trying to analyze this new information that she was receiving. Jake was in love with Sam and broke up with Kate. All of a sudden Jen realized something: Jake was going to ruin all of her planning that she, Sam, and Quinn had gone through the last couple of days. He wasn't with Kate anymore, so he wouldn't be going to the Valentine's Dance and wouldn't be able to get together with Sam. But on the other hand this was wonderful news because he was in love with Sam and they didn't need a silly school dance to fall in love at. But still all of that good planning was now wasted and Jen decided that Jake Ely would get a piece of her mind for that.

"Jake I'm really happy that you broke up with Kate and love Sam, but you just completely ruined all of my plans to set you and Sam up at the Valentine's Dance."

"Maybe not," said Jake. "That's where my favor comes in. I want to tell Sam how I feel about her at the dance. Since I don't have a date anymore, I was wondering if you would go with me and then I can tell Sam that I love her at the dance."

"All right," said Jen in an even tone. "I'll go as your date to the dance and then once we get there you can confess your feelings to Sam. This actually will make everything so much easier."

"By the way Jen, why did you want to set me up with Sam in the first place?" asked Jake curiously.

"Because Sam loves you and I would anything for my best friend." After Jen said those words she realized what she had just said. "Don't tell Sam that I told you that."

"Sam loves me?" asked Jake after what seemed like a couple of minutes to Jen.

"Yes, she loves you. Why, I'm not entirely sure of, but she does. She couldn't stand it when you blew her off every time when Kate was around. She would act happy for you, but inside it tore her apart"

"Why are you telling me all of this?" asked Jake quietly.

"Because I think you should know what it was like for her when you ignored her for the Ice Princess. Just treat Sam right Jake, and you won't have any problems. But if you break her heart, I'll hunt you down and hurt you and your horse."

"Don' worry, I won't break her heart," said Jake with a seriousness in his voice that Jen had never heard before. "It's getting late and I have to go. Thanks for the information Jen."

"Anytime, Ely. Just remember what I said."

With that Jen and Jake both hung up their phones and had a lot to think about for the rest of the night.

The next day Jen and Sam had off from school. The Valentine's Dance was to be held the next day, which would be Saturday. The girls were excited to have three long days off from school and a big dance to look forward to.

Sam couldn't help but notice that her best friend was in a super good mood that day. Every time she would ask Jen about it she would get a vague answer that didn't make any sense at all. Finally Sam couldn't take it anymore and asked "What are you so excited about? And don't tell me some vague answer again either."

Jen wanted to tell her best friend the real reason why she was so happy but had made a promise that she wouldn't break. Instead Jen went with a half truth. "I got a date for the dance tomorrow night!"

"Really?" asked Sam excitedly. "That's terrific Jen!"

"Thanks," said Jen.

"Now we can both have fun at the dance." Sam was saying in a rush of words.

"We'll both be at the dance and when Jake sees you tomorrow night all fancied up, he'll forget about Kate and only have eyes for you."

"I doubt it," said Sam sadly. "He'll be too busy dancing with Kate and gazing into her evil eyes all night to notice me."

"Oh, cheer up Sam," said Jen happily. "People can surprise you when you're not expecting it." 

"I suppose so," said Sam. "So who are you going with tomorrow night?"

"It's a surprise," said Jen excitedly. "You'll get to meet him at the dance tomorrow night and not before that."

"I don't even get a hint?" asked Sam mischievously.

"Nope," replied Jen in a serious voice. "What are you wearing to the dance tomorrow night?"

Sam noticed that Jen had changed the subject and decided not to push the topic any further on her secret date. "I was just going to wear my long black dress."

"Please tell me that it's not the long black dress with pink polka dots on it," said Jen in a horrified voice.

"Why, what's wrong with that dress?" said Sam. "I've worn it before and you never said anything about it."

Jen shook her head in amazement at her friend's lack of fashion. "That dress might be okay for me to wear because I love bizarre fashions like that, but it's all wrong for you. You need a dress that enhances your features and will make Jake drop dead at the sight of you."

"Where am I supposed to find such a dress?" asked Sam. Sam couldn't believe this. The dance was tomorrow night and the dress she had been planning to wear wasn't good enough according to Jen. She wanted the perfect dress that would make Jake notice her and fall in love with her.

"I believe that I might have a dress that would be perfect for you. It's an emerald green dress and it will make you look drop dead gorgeous tomorrow night."

"I'll have to see it before I decide to wear it."

"Of course," Jen said. "Here's a picture of it."

Jen pulled out a photograph of a lovely green dress. It was a gorgeous green strapless dress that had sparkles on the torso and would go great with Sam's auburn hair.

"Jen, this dress is beautiful."

"I know," said Jen smugly. "That's why I picked it up for you when I went to the thrift shop the other day. I knew it would look great on you."

"Well at least I have a dress now. Anything else that I need to look drop dead gorgeous for tomorrow night?"

"Let's see the perfect hairstyle, earrings, shoes, and probably a million of other things. Let's go through your stuff to see what you have and then we can try out different hairstyles on you today."

Sam couldn't help but think that she wouldn't have survived this dance planning stuff without her best friend's help. Sam smiled at Jen and said "What are we waiting for? Let's get started because we have less than 24 hours until the dance."

With that the girls went up to Sam's bedroom and started going through what they could use and not use to make Sam into Cinderella by the dance tomorrow night. While they were trying on different pieces of jewelry and hairstyles, Jen let Sam in on the new plans for the next night. Jen and Jake had come up with some better plans the night before and Jen was positive that tomorrow night her best friend would be living a magical fairytale.


	11. Chapter 10

Thanks to everyone who has been reviewing this story it means a lot to me. Without your reviews I probaly wouldn't have this chapter up yet.

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Chapter 10: Getting Ready

The day of the dance was finally here, thought Sam happily as she slowly woke up on Saturday morning. It was a beautiful morning, and the ground was covered in a new white blanket of fresh snow that had fallen during the night. The view from Sam's bedroom window was indescribable. As Sam looked out her window it reminded her of a Christmas card she saw once. The barn looked cozy with a layer of new snow atop of its' roof. The horses were running around in the fresh snow in the ten acre pasture.

Sam continued looking out of the window for a few more minutes before she finally pulled herself away. She had many things to get done today and it was best if she got an early start on it. She pulled on her work clothes quickly and headed outside to get her chores done.

Sam got through her chores as fast as she could and then came in and ate breakfast. After that she continued working until noon. Her dad had given her the afternoon off so she could ready for the dance tonight.

She took a long hot shower and by the time she got out it was already 1:30. She had half an hour to waste before Jen came over to start getting ready for the dance. She sat on her bed and waited for her hair to dry. She picked up one of her mystery books to read and turned on the radio.

Soon enough, Sam's hair was dry. Sam took the towel off of her head and stared at herself in the mirror in the bathroom. Sam was trying to envision herself with her hair up in a fancy style and the green gown that Jen was bringing her. Sam hadn't decided on a hair style yet. Her friend Callie had agreed to come over and do her and Jen's hair for the dance. She had mentioned that she would bring books and magazines over of hairstyles that she and Jen could chose from.

Sam walked back into her bedroom. The radio was still on and they were playing Taylor Swift's new hit _You Belong with Me. _Sam listened to the song and thought once again how these songs by Taylor Swift seemed to fit her life perfectly. Sam remembered seeing the music video a few days ago and couldn't help but hope that tonight ended up exactly like the music video had, with the two friends finally admitting they were in love and kissing. The song ended and another song came on that Sam didn't recognize.

It was almost 2:00 and Sam went downstairs to wait for Jen. Sam didn't have long to wait. As soon as Sam walked to the kitchen Jen was walking through the door into the house.

Jen entered the house laden down with two dresses, and a couple of bags of other things that Jen believed that they would need to transform them into girls ready for their first high school dance with dates.

Sam took one of the bags from Jen and the green dress. They went up to Sam's bedroom and dumped all of the bags onto the bed.

"So," said Jen in a voice that could barely contain her excitement. "Are you ready for the best night of your life?"

"I'm definitely ready," said Sam smiling. "If it's the best night of my life is yet to be determined"

"I can't believe this is the first dance we're going to with actual dates," said Jen excitedly.

"I know, right?" Said Sam. "So, who is your mysterious date? You still haven't told me."

Jen all of a sudden got quiet. She hadn't told Sam that she had changed the plan for tonight since finding out that Jake had broken up Kate. If she told her best friend that she was going with the guy she was setting Sam up with, that would be a little awkward and Jake would kill her for sure. So Jen kept the confusing details from Sam and played her date up as some mystery guy that Sam would meet at the dance and only at the dance.

"I told you I'm not telling you until we get to the dance." Said Jen.

"Not even a little clue?"

Jen sighed and looked at her best friend. She knew Sam would keep hounding her until she got at one clue. "Fine. You get one clue. You know him and he goes to our school."

Sam thought about whom hat could be and couldn't narrow it down to anybody. "That narrows it down to pretty much all the boys who go to our school."

"Pretty much," agreed Jen.

Sam walked around her bedroom trying to figure out who Jen's mysterious date was. It was bugging her that she didn't have a slight clue to who it could be. She knew she wouldn't find out any time soon or at least until the dance. But the fact that Jen wasn't telling her who it was bothered Sam a little bit. It had been bothering her since she found out that Jen had a date. Sam knew her best friend had a reason for not telling her and she would have to live with the anticipation until tonight.

Sam walked over to her bed to where the green sparkly dress laid. She ran a hand over the fabric and couldn't help but smile. She hoped that the dress would fit her; otherwise she would be forced to wear her 'horrible' polka dotted dress. She knew she should have tried on the dress before today to make it had fit, but time had allowed her that opportunity. She was hopping that the dress would fit her perfectly, like in the books that she was always reading.

Sam picked up the dress and carefully took out of the dress bad that was protecting it. She slid it off of the hanger and held the dress in her hands for a few seconds. Was this dress truly going to make Jake notice her tonight? Sam hoped so, but couldn't be sure for certain. Was a simple dress going to make some boy suddenly fall in love with a girl who had considered his little sister for so many years? Sam didn't know the answer but, she hoped that tonight would be her special night.

"I'm going to go try the dress on," said Sam.

Jen was rummaging through one of her many bags for something and nodded her head to indicate that she had heard Sam. "Let me know how it fits and show me," said Jen.

Sam padded down the hallway to the bathroom. She closed the door behind her and slipped into the gown. Sam pulled the zipper up in back and then looked at herself in the mirror. The dress fit her perfectly! It was truly a magical dress for a fairytale type dance, thought Sam to herself. As Sam twirled in front of the bathroom mirror, she felt beautiful for the first time in her life. She felt like a princess in the dress and all she needed now was her Prince Charming.

Sam picked up the bottom of the gown and walked back into her bedroom to show Jen

the dress. Jen was reading one of Sam's many horse magazines that had been scattered on the bedroom floor. Sam twirled in front of Jen and was mildly surprised to see the look on Jen's face. Jen's eyes were opened wide and her mouth hung open a little bit. Sam stopped twirling around and started to wonder if the dress didn't look well on her all of a sudden.

"What?" asked Sam in a panicked voice. "Does the dress look that bad on me or something?"

Jen finally found her voice. "No. You look like a princess in that dress. It's perfect!"

"Thanks," said Sam grinning happily. "For a moment I thought you were going to say it looked horrible."

"No. It looks like it was made just for you and only you," said Jen.

"Do you think Jake will notice me tonight in it?" Asked Sam chewing her bottom lip a little bit.

"Oh, he'll notice you tonight, all right," said Jen grinning wickedly. "Him and every other guy at the dance. Sam, that dress will makes you look stunning."

Sam didn't know what to say, so she didn't say anything. Shortly after that Gram came into her room with a plate full of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies and two glasses of milk.

"So, how are the dance preparations coming?" Asked Gram as she placed the plate of cookies on Sam's messy desk.

"Good," replied Jen. "Sam looks like a fairytale princess in her green dress."

Gram looked to where Sam was standing and couldn't believe that was actually her granddaughter. She looked so beautiful and grown up.

"You look so pretty, Sam." Gram said in a soft voice. "You look so much like your mother. She would've been so proud of you."

"Really?" asked Sam quietly with tears in her eyes now.

Gram nodded her head. Gram quickly regained her composure and left the room.

"I'll be right back," Gram said as she left.

Sam and Jen looked at each other for a second, but then continued getting ready.

About fifteen minutes later Gram entered Sam's bedroom again holding a box. Sam wasn't sure what was inside the box, but it made her curious. Gram sat down on the bed and Sam sat down next to her.

"Sam, I want you to have these for the dance tonight" Gram said quietly.

"What's in the box, Gram?" Sam asked her voice full of curiosity.

"These were your mother's shoes. She wore these on the day she married your father."

"I thought that Dad had gotten rid of all of mom's things after she died."

"No, Sam. He kept a few of her things and I also put away some of her things for when you were old enough to use them."

Sam reached her the box and pulled the cover off the shoe box. Inside was a pair of strapped high heeled shoes that were silver. Sam wasn't sure if she would be able to walk in them, but she loved all the same. These were her mother's shoes that she had worn on her wedding day. Without realizing it a tear slid out her eye and down her face.

"Thanks, Gram. This means so much to me." Sam said her voice full of emotion.

"Your mother would be so proud of you tonight, Sam. She would've wanted you to wear her shoes to the dance."

Sam at a lost for words couldn't think of a thing to say so she wrapped her arms around Gram and gave a hug. The hug conveyed all of the emotions that Sam couldn't put into words, but Gram understood her.

Sam dried her eyes with the back of her hand and was thankful that she hadn't put on her mascara yet for tonight.

Gram gently got up from Sam's bed and said "You have to finish getting yourselves ready before Quinn comes to pick you guys up."

Sam nodded and was wondering what time it was when she heard somebody knocking on the door downstairs. Realizing that it must be around 4:30 because the person at the door had to be her friend Callie who had agreed to do her and Jen's hair for the dance.

Gram went downstairs to let Callie in, while Sam helped Jen get into her dress. Once Jen was in her dress, the girls went downstairs to get their hair done.

Sam and Jen walked into the kitchen to see Callie setting up everything that she would need to transform their hair into some amazing style. She had a curling iron plugged into the outlet warming it up, and tons of bobby pins, hair ties, brushes, combs and many other things lying on the table.

"Hey, Sam! It's nice to see you again." Callie said happily. Callie had been so busy lately she hadn't had a chance to talk to Sam in awhile.

"It's nice to see you too!" exclaimed Sam happily.

"I brought some books and magazines full of different hairstyles for you guys to look through, or if you have a style in mind already I can probably do that too." Callie said in her professional voice.

"I think we should look through the books," said Sam. "I haven't found a style yet."

Sam and Jen sat down at the kitchen table on the side that wasn't covered in beauty supplies and picked up the magazines and books looking for the style that they wanted.

The styles in the magazines were much better than the styles she and Jen had experimented with the other day. The styles varied from elegant, to wild, to crazy, and then some styles Sam didn't know what they were supposed to be.

Sam was looking through a wedding hairstyle magazine and found a style where the hair was up in a bun, but instead of a boring bun the hair was curled into little ringlets and pinned. Sam knew this was the style that she wanted for her hair tonight. She was flipping through the rest of the magazine though to be sure that this was her favorite. All of a sudden she heard Jen exclaim from her side.

"Sam, look at these hairstyles."

Sam put down her magazine and looked over Jen's shoulder to see what Jen was talking about. Jen had a magazine on famous sci-fi hairstyles. There were several different hairstyles from movies like Star Trek and Star Wars. Sam and Jen both loved Star Wars and everything about it, but Sam would never wear her hair like that for a school dance. She thought the magazine was more geared for a Halloween costume than an important school dance. Jen was looking at different Princess Leia hairstyles and Sam couldn't help but feel that Jen would choose one of those for the dance.

Typical that Jen would find her hairstyle in a sci-fi magazine, Sam thought to herself. Sam loved some of the hairstyles that she saw, but knew she would never have the courage to wear one of them to a high school dance, afraid of what all the other students would think of her. Lucky for Jen, she didn't care what others thought of her or the clothes she wore or the hairstyles she put her hair into.

Jen walked into the living room, still looking at her magazine. Sam pointed out the style that she wanted to Callie.

"Do you think you could do this style?" asked Sam eagerly to Callie.

Callie looked over the page that Sam had indicated. She studied it for a moment and then smiled. "Sure I can. This one's easy."

Sam sat down in the chair across the table next to the curling iron and other hair supplies. Callie started by brushing her hair out to get rid of all the knots and snarls.

"So, who are you going to the dance with?" asked Callie as she worked on Sam's hair.

"Quinn Ely," said Sam quietly.

Callie started twisting and twirling Sam's hair. "I thought for sure it would be Jake Ely who was taking you to the dance." Callie said as she worked another knot out of Sam's hair.

_So did I _thought Sam darkly to herself. But Jake had made it clear to her that he was going with Kate. Sam really hoped for her miracle tonight, that Jake would realize that Kate was all wrong for him and find out that Sam was the girl for him.

To Callie Sam said, "No. Jake and I are just friends. He's taking his girlfriend Kate to the dance."

"Oh," was the only thing that Callie could think to say. "Can you put your head down?"

Sam did as she was told and that ended their conversation since Callie needed to concentrate on the more difficult aspects of the hairstyle. Half an hour later Callie was putting the finishing touches to Sam's hair and spraying her hair with what felt like half a bottle of hairspray.

Sam got up from the chair and let Jen know that it was her turn to get her hair done. Sam padded up the stairs to the bathroom to see how her hair looked.

Sam stared at the reflection that was staring back at her. She could hardly believe that was herself she was looking at in the mirror. She looked much more grown up with her hair up the way it was. Sam stared at herself for a few more seconds then went to her room to get her makeup.

It only took Sam a few minutes to put her makeup on. Since Jen wasn't done with her hair yet, Sam had time to paint her nails. It wasn't a fancy manicure like most of the girls would have, but Sam thought her nails looked good enough for one night.

Sam went upstairs to her bedroom once she had finished her nails. Once there, Sam stood in her room and wondered why she had come in here in the first place. She had all of her jewelry on, hair done, dress one and her mother's magical wedding shoes were on her feet. The shoes had fit Sam perfectly and it made her happy that she got to wear something that had once been her mother's.

Sam realized than that she had come to grab a purse out of her messy closet. While Sam was looking for a purse to use that was appreciate for a school dance, Jen came into the room having her hair finally done.

"You haven't seen my black fancy purse, have you?" Sam asked Jen.

"It's on your nigh table, behind your lamp," replied Jen. Sam was crawling out of her closet, while Jen grabbed the purse for Sam.

Sam took her purse from her best friend and just stared at Jen with her mouth slightly opened. Sam had thought that Jen had been joking with her earlier about putting her up into some weird, crazy sci-fi hairdo. Sam couldn't believe that Jen had actually had Callie put her hair into one of those weird styles.

"Do you like?" asked Jen as she slowly turned around so Sam could see the entire style.

"Umm," said Sam uncertainly. "You do realize we're going to a Valentine's dance, not a Halloween dance, right?"

"Of course, I know," said Jen a little defensively. "My date for the dance is going to love my hair like this. He's into that sort of thing"

"Well, he definitely will be able to find you with your hair that way, since you're the only one at the dance who will look like Princess Leia."

Jen had Callie style her hair into Princess Leia's iconic buns from the original movie. Sam knew that Jen didn't care what other people thought of her and was known to wear the weirdest combinations together. Still in the back of Sam's mind she couldn't believe her best friends had actually done her hair that way for a Valentine's dance and was a little envious of Jen that she could do that and didn't care or worry what others would say about her.

"Callie did a great job with your hair," Sam said approximately trying to sound eager for Jen. "It looks almost identical to the style except that your hair is blonde instead of brown."

"I can't wait to see the look on my date's face when he sees me," Jen said excitedly.

"He won't be able to take his eyes of you the entire night," Sam said smiling to herself.

"I'm counting on that," replied Jen.

The girls were just finishing up when the doorbell rang downstairs. They heard Gram open the door and then heard Gram yelling up the stairs that Quinn was there to pick them up.

Sam was halfway down the stairs behind Jen when Sam almost lost her balance. Standing next to Quinn at the end of the stairs was Jake. _What is Jake doing here?_ Sam thought to herself. Didn't he have to go pick up his spoiled girlfriend in some expensive limo? But Sam wasn't mistaking or losing her mind. Jake was at the end of the stairs and staring up at her and Jen.

Sam kept to the plan though. She completely ignored Jake and walked over to Quinn, who was waiting for her with a bouquet of daisies. She hugged Quinn, trying to make Jake jealous of the attention she was giving to his brother. Sam even gave Quinn a delicate kiss on the cheek. Sam knew she shouldn't be trying to make Jake jealous, but she couldn't help it.

All of a sudden Gram, her father, and her step mom entered the room. Sam saw what was in her step mother's hands and felt like she had to get out of the house within in the next three seconds. Sam wasn't fast enough though. Brynna was already snapping away a million pictures of the four of them. Sam loved taking pictures, but she hated when she was the one being photographed.

Brynna insisted on having a million pictures taken of them. First she and Sam and Quinn pose for a few pictures. Then there a group picture of the four of them. The last picture Brynna made Sam and Jake pose for a picture. Jake actually put his arm around Sam's waist and surprised her. Finally a few more shots later they were free to leave the house for the dance.

Once outside Jake caught up to Sam who was hurrying for the truck. "You look nice tonight, brat." He said softly in Sam's ear.

Sam was thankful that it was dark outside; otherwise Jake might have noticed that she was blushing a most unbecoming shade of red. Sam nodded her head and thanked Jake for his compliment.

Jake held the door open for Sam and helped her into the truck. Then just as quietly as before Jake asked "What did Jen do to her hair?"

"Apparently her date is into sci-fi stuff, so she styled her hair as Princess Leia."

"Poor guy," replied Jake sounding a little miffed.

Sam shook her head at Jake's comment and soon enough all four of them were piled into the truck and on their way to a dance that would change their lives forever.


End file.
